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Twenty-two hours later, after pulling in through the big, black, wrought-iron gates at Gunner’s place, I was still thinking about how Des and I might’ve taken time to find that something she supposedly needed back in her yurt. We hadn’t, but...it would’ve been fast and fun and felt so damn good. I was also thinking about what a freaking horndog I’d turned into that I couldn’tstopthinking about making love to mysakanaevery minute of the day. I also wondered how all the bonded males I knew got anything done when the drive to make love—have sex, mate, fuck, whatever they called it—was so strong I had to force myself not to think about it, which of course, meant I was stillfreakingthinking about it. And since I was always thinking about sex, Desarae felt it, so she was thinking about sex, too. We couldn’t always act on our immediate desires, but we were learning to adjust. Des said having to wait only added to the anticipation. I had to agree. It had been over a day since I’d last been inside mysakanaand it might be another long day before we found a moment alone. When we found the time, it would be amazing.
Desarae ran her hand down my forearm and smiled. She knew exactly what I was trying so hard not to think about. She pointed out my side window. I glanced over to see Gunner’s native wolves running alongside the truck, escorting us down the long dirt road all the way to the big ranch house where Gunner stood waiting outside on the long wooden porch. The sun hadn’t come up yet, but I knew from experience almost everyone in the house would be up except for a few late-sleeping stragglers.
I pulled up and parked off to the side of the house, and since my mind had been onother thingsthe entire ride, I hadn’t prepared myself for the olfactory overload I got the second I stepped from the truck cab.
“Holy...hell.” Closing my eyes, I leaned back against the truck. My brain needed to catch up and catalogue all the familiar and welcome scents bombarding my senses—wolves, horses, hay, wood smoke, baking bread, cinnamon, family.
Soft hands touched my face. I knew my mom’s lavender and vanilla scent better than my own. “You probably should’ve rolled down a window long before you got here.”
I leaned down and wrapped my arms around my mom. Her love folded around me and made me feel safe, like it always did.
“It’s freezing out, Mom, and the twins...” I gazed down into eyes the exact shade as mine and grinned. “Mydaughterswere sleepin’.”
The sugary-sweet scent of cotton candy bloomed in the air as I knew it would. It didn’t matter whose blood-offspring they were—my mom and dad would love their granddaughters without reservation.
“I found her,” I whispered. “Mysakana.”
She blinked and two happy tears traced their way down her smiling face. “I heard.”
My dad’s cedarwood and lemongrass scent registered next.
“Well,” he said, as he gripped my shoulder and gave it a hard squeeze. “Let’s get everyone inside where it’s warm and cozy so we can have a proper introduction.”
I nodded as I looked up to see my dad’s smile and blue-rimmed white eyes. At six foot-five, I was tall, but my dad had two inches on me. It wouldn’t matter if I towered over him, I’dstilllook up to my dad. He was cocky as all hell and enjoyed annoying Gunner, as little brothers tended to do, but he was a good and worthy male.
My gaze flicked down to my dad’s neck and I tried not to let the little spark of hope die if...
Holy...
There it was. My mom’s mark. On my dad’s neck.
Holy hell. She’d done it.
I took a deep breath and let my brain sort through what I was looking for.
They haven’t mated.
Didn’t matter. That mark on my dad’s neck was a big freaking promise. When I looked back into my dad’s face, that was no smug, pie-eatin’ grin crinkling his cheeks in all the happiest ways. Nope. That smile he wore was one I’d seen in the mirror a whole lot lately—all respect and love andI’m not worthy.
A powerful rush of love and affection made my stomach flip, and my eyes burn.
Fuck. Stop being so damn emotional.
“Seff?” Concern colored Desarae’s voice.
My mom and dad stepped back as Des came around the front of the truck. I reached out and tucked her into my side.
“Mom, Dad, this is Desarae, mysakana.”
In the next second, mysakanawas snatched from my arm and passed back and forth between my parents, who hugged her like a long-lost daughter. Mom cried, but they were the happiest tears ever.
Behind me, I heard tapping at the truck window. Einar was still in the middle of the backseat, Neri and Arteisma propped against him as they slept.
“Hey, Mom, we’re gonna need an extra room.”
She wiped at her face and nodded. “No problem. Gunner had the piano moved downstairs and turned that upstairs room into a library. I can make up one of the air mattresses for our guest. I already made up two rooms for all y’all.” She made a circling gesture with her hand for Des, me, and the twins. “You might want to freshen up. Did you sleep at all?”
Her inquiries didn’t stop as Einar and I gently extracted the twins from the backseat and carried them up the front porch steps. Desarae easily answered all my mom’s questions about the twins’ favorite foods, their favorite colors, what size clothing they wore, did they know how to ride a bike. That question had me looking at my dad, who shrugged and mouthed,Simone.
